They hate Kirk, all the more reason to support him

To: edlasky@att.nethttp://www.commentarymagazine.com/blogs/index.php/rubin/232241



It seems as though “activists and liberal Mideast policy groups” don’t like the idea of Rep. Mark Kirk getting to the U.S. Senate, given his pro-Israel voting record.” You can understand that these groups wouldn’t want someone who was the “driving force behind a host of legislative efforts to sanction Iran (he’s the founder of of the Iran Working Group),” a vocal critic of the UN, and an opponent of Chas Freeman.



The above links to the TPM Muckraker blog item on Kirk but I rpeface that with a thumbnail sketch of TPM.



Josh Marshall , who founded and runs TPM, has 14 approved sites as his recommended websites. Among them are Andrew Sullivan’s (who routinely derides Israel and American Jews who lobby for Israel); Juan Cole-who loathes Israel and whose translation was relied upon by the NYT to argue that Iran does not intend to destroy Israel; Matt Yglesias-who from his post at the Soros creation, The Center for American Progress, disparages Israel; Pro Publica-founded and financed by Soros political partners, Herb and Marion Sandler- has started investigating how foreign policy is made on Capitol Hill.



His website is popular on the left:



Joshua Micah Marshall (born February 15, 1969 in St. Louis, Missouri) is an American Polk Award-winning[1] journalist[2] who founded Talking Points Memo,[1] which The New York Times Magazine called "one of the most popular and most respected sites" in the blogosphere.[3] He currently presides over a network of sites that operate under the TPM Media banner and average 400,000 page views every weekday[4] and 750,000 unique visitors every month.[5][6]





TPMMuckraker
GOP Senate Contender Kirk Is Favorite Of Pro-Israel PACs
Justin Elliott | February 4, 2010, 11:28AM
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Rep. Mark Kirk (R-IL)

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AIPAC, Alexi Giannoulias, Chas Freeman, Gaza, Israel, Israel-Palestine, Mark Kirk
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Republican Rep. Mark Kirk enters the Illinois Senate race as the member of the House who has consistently reaped the biggest contribution totals from pro-Israel PACs, making a name for himself through five terms in Congress as a hardline leader on legislation relating to the Israel-Palestine conflict.

Kirk, who is considered a moderate Republican on most issues, sailed to an easy victory in the GOP primary this week and goes into the general election race as a strong contender for Barack Obama's old Senate seat.

There are plenty of members of Congress who subscribe to the same hawkish pro-Israel positions as Kirk. But the money totals (and his legislative record) show that Kirk is a particular favorite of the pro-Israel community.

In 2008, for example, Kirk got $414,000 from pro-Israel PACs, more than double the haul of the next biggest recipient in the House, and behind only Barack Obama, John McCain, and Hillary Clinton overall, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.

With $108,000 in pro-Israel PAC donations in the current cycle, Kirk is second overall (to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid), and easily the biggest recipient in the House. He was the second biggest recipient of pro-Israel dollars in 2006. And his career total is $1,025,000, seventh overall of any member of Congress, and behind only prominent senators like Joe Lieberman.

With polls showing Kirk in a strong position in his Senate race, activists and liberal Mideast policy groups are concerned that he could become AIPAC's point man in the Senate. (It's worth noting that AIPAC, the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, is a lobbying organization and does not donate to campaigns.)

Kirk's campaign Web site calls the congressman a "pro-Israel champion," listing accomplishments against Iran and Hamas. His Democratic opponent, Alexi Giannoulias, also touts "unwavering" support for Israel, though his site also endorses a two-state solution, which Kirk's does not.

In the House, Kirk has been a driving force behind a host of legislative efforts to sanction Iran (he's the founder of of the Iran Working Group), increase U.S. military support of Israel (including the integration of Israel into the American ballistic missile defense system), and cut any U.S. support for Palestinians (he wants to slash funding for the UN agency that is charged with aiding refugees).

He was also one of the leaders of the campaign against Chas Freeman, an Obama pick for the National Intelligence Council whose nomination was killed after a campaign by the pro-Israel community.

Kirk caused a mini controversy when, during the invasion of Gaza last year, he said: "To misquote Shakespeare, something is rotten in Gaza and now it's time to take out the trash."